Following in his Footsteps
by finnicko-loves-anniec
Summary: Cousins. Friends. Master and apprentice. This is a collection of oneshots about Ben, Jacen, and a host of other characters that are generally set between the Dark Nest Trilogy and Legacy of the Force. There's a little angst, a lot of fluff, and everything in between.
1. Not-So-Aggressive Negotiations

Age: 12 standard years

Ben glanced down at his chrono. Kriff. It was still only fourteen twenty. That meant the meeting would not be over for at least another forty minutes, and if having two Jedi Masters for parents had taught him anything, it was that official meetings never ended on time. He leaned back in his chair, ready to accept death by boredom. It might be better than waiting for this meeting to be over.

One of the representatives raised their voice, bringing Ben's attention back to the proceedings. Ben inwardly groaned when he realized who was speaking. Chulman Argant had no legitimate reason to be upset, after all, this entire fiasco was his fault to begin with. The Bandomeerian ionite baron had not been content with his massive holdings on the western part of the continent, and had begun to mine on the native Meerian's land. The resulting pollution had been catastrophic, poisoning water sources and causing widespread crop failure. The Meerians had complained to the government, but most of the officials on Bandomeer were on Argant's payroll, so no action was taken. Disappointed by their local government's failure to act, the Meerians had contacted the Galactic Alliance, who had sent Jacen and Ben to arrange a settlement between Argant and the Meerian farmers.

So far, they had made little progress. Argant was entirely unwilling to accept any blame. The man had even had the gall to suggest that the Meerians were polluting their own croplands by using outdated, dangerous farming methods. When Jacen had brought up that the chemicals found in the water supply would be useless as fertilizers and that their only use was in industrial ionite mining, Argant had turned bright red and sputtered. Ben had done his best to cover his snicker with his hand, but he was pretty sure that Jacen had noticed.

Finally, his cousin cut off Argant. "I am sure that we can find a mutually acceptable solution to this problem," said Jacen. "Argant, would you be willing to pay each individual farmer one and a half times the pre-pollution value of their land and reimburse any medical bills the affected families might have incurred due to the mining activities of your company?" Ben was surprised. Jacen was offering almost exactly what the Meerians had requested in the first place. Before Argant could speak, Jacen continued, "In return, Argant Mining Incorporated would not be required to accept official responsibility for the pollution. Would this arrangement be acceptable to your people?" he asked Councilwoman Slarvez, the head of the Meerian delegation.

The woman nodded. "It would be best if Argant were required to accept guilt for his actions against my people, but I do accept your offer."

"Well, Argant? It's all up to you." Ben looked to see how the industrialist would respond. Jacen's deal was generous. The public image of Argant's company would not be tarnished, and the settlement to the farmers would hardly be a financial burden to the wealthy man.

Argant nodded. "We at Argant Mining Incorporated will be happy to help our Meerian neighbors in their time of trouble. I accept your offer."

The paperwork was quickly filed and everyone at the table shook hands before leaving. Ben checked his chrono again. Just as he had expected, the meeting had run late. Ben stretched and took the stairs down to street level with Jacen. "I'm starving," he said.

"That makes two of us," replied Jacen. "Let's cook something on the way back to Coruscant, okay? I'd like to get back as quickly as possible to file this report and ensure that Argant actually follows through on his promises."

"As long as we eat, I'm okay with about anything." Ben checked to make sure that nobody from the conferences earlier was within earshot. "I think the farmers were dumping chemical pollutants on their own land just for fun. They really ought to be more responsible. It's a wonder nothing like this has happened before," he said in his best impression of Chulman Argant.

Jacen snorted. "You're forgetting how he took a giant breath after every phrase. Add that, and I think you could pass as him."

"Thanks Jacen. It's always great to know that at age twelve I could already pass for an out of shape fifty-year old man."

"I meant it in the most complimentary way possible," said Jacen. They had now reached the hangar and boarded Jacen's yacht. Ben sat in the copilot's seat and helped with the pre-flight checklist.

"Why did Argant keep arguing that his company didn't cause the pollution? It's obvious that it was his fault, and the money wasn't enough to matter to him anyway."

Jacen thought for a moment before he answered Ben's question. "I think it was pride. Most beings do not want to accept that they were wrong, especially in front of others. Argant wanted to save face, even if everybody knew that the pollution was his fault."

"That makes sense." Ben was quiet for a few minutes as they took off. "Hey Jacen, I think I like the missions where we do more than talk better than these diplomatic missions."

"Diplomacy is an important skill for a Jedi to learn," answered Jacen.

"Don't deny that you wanted to stick a lightsaber in Argent's face a few times during those meetings," said Ben.

Jacen tried to give Ben a disapproving look, but instead he ended up laughing. "I'm not sure whether murder or lying is more against the Jedi Code, so I'll choose not to answer that one," he said. Ben rested back in his seat, glad to be going home. Hopefully their next mission would be a little more exciting.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! Also, a special shout out to NoImagination for the kind review – I love knowing what people think of my writing. It would be fantastic if you could leave a review, as I am trying to improve my writing, and constructive criticism lets me know what to work on. Thanks again!


	2. Ben Bites Off More Than He Can Chew

A/N: I've been wanting to write a Star Wars fanfiction for a while. I understand why there is so little Ben/Jacen interaction on Fanfiction, but I think it's an important relationship that the authors of DNT and LotF didn't develop as thoroughly as they should have. After all, the hero worship that Ben has for Jacen had to start somewhere, right? Image by FalconFan on deviantart.

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars; A giant, talking mouse does.

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Ben Bites Off More Than He Can Chew

Age: 7 standard years

* * *

Ben always wanted to watch them make the sundaes. His father never let him. Usually, when they ended up in this cafeteria, Dad was on his way to some important meeting and they only stayed long enough to grab their food. Seven year olds like Ben don't care about meetings. They do care very much about ice cream.

Today, Ben had come to the cafeteria with Jacen. He was not really sure what to think of the man. Mom had told him that he had known Jacen as a baby, that his cousin had saved Dad's life by crying on him. Ben was certainly glad that Jacen had saved Luke, but he thought that maybe his cousin had changed since then. After all, this Jacen had journeyed all over the galaxy to learn things that not even the Jedi Masters knew about the Force. He hadn't even talked to his family for five years. Ben was only seven, so five years was almost as long as he had been alive. He could understand not wanting to talk to your dad for five years, but how could anybody not talk to their mom for that long?

He looked up at Jacen to find that his cousin was watching him. "Do you want to go watch them make the sundaes?" Jacen asked.

Ben couldn't help it. His eyes widened with excitement and almost before he finished his "yes, please," he was almost bouncing over to the sundae station. Jacen chuckled and followed the boy. Ben wasn't quite tall enough yet to see over the counter, but he stood on his tiptoes next to the station, determined that he would watch.

"Do you want a lift?" asked Jacen. Ben nodded, and Jacen picked up his cousin. Ben could now see the droid filling the sundae orders. Q6-D9 moved incredibly fast, combining ice cream and toppings almost more quickly than the human eye could follow. They stayed there for several moments, neither one speaking.

Eventually, Jacen noticed that a waiter droid was standing next to the table they had left. "I think our sundaes are ready," he told Ben. The Jedi gently set the boy down. Ben was a little disappointed that the show was over, but he did like ice cream, so he was happy to go back to their booth. He was especially pleased when he saw the sundae that the droid had set in his spot. His parents would never let Ben eat that much ice cream, but Jacen hadn't said anything when he'd ordered 3 scoops.

Over the next twenty minutes, Ben did his best to finish his ice cream while Jacen told him stories about his five-year journey. Jacen was a fantastic storyteller, but by the end, Ben's stomach hurt too much to listen. Trying to be polite, Ben didn't say anything, but somehow Jacen realized that his cousin was no longer listening. "You don't have to eat that whole thing," Jacen stopped his story to tell Ben. "I won't tell anyone that you didn't finish." Ben had never been glad to stop eating ice cream before, but he was glad to set down his spoon. "Ready to head back? I'm pretty sure the meeting will be over by now."

Ben nodded, and they left the cafeteria. He placed his hand in Jacen's as they crossed the street back to the main building. Mom always said he needed to hold hands in the street. "Thank you for taking me to get ice cream," Ben said.

"You're welcome," Jacen replied. "It was nice to spend some time with you. I haven't really seen you since you were a baby." He looked down at his cousin and smiled. "I think you've grown a little since then."

Ben laughed at Jacen's joke. Jacen seemed nice. Ben thought that, just maybe, he and his cousin could be friends.

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A/N: Thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated – I want to improve my writing, so constructive criticism is always helpful.


	3. Training Remote Blunders

Age: 10 standard years

* * *

"Ouch!" Ben gasped as the blaster bolt hit him. The low-powered stun bolts that the training remote emitted were designed to not cause any actual damage, but they did sting. He raised his training lightsaber again, not wanting to miss the next round. He allowed the Force to flow through him, letting it guide his actions. Ben was rewarded when he blocked the next three shots from the remote, but lost his concentration after his small victory and the fourth bolt hit him in his thigh.

He turned off his lightsaber and threw off his helmet in frustration. He had practiced with the remote every day for the last week, and he still wasn't any better than when he'd started. Ben sat on the ground, wanting to cry. Dad would never let him make his own lightsaber now. The sound of blaster fire drew him out of his self-pity. Even before he knew what he was doing, Ben rolled away from the shots. He stood up, ready to defend himself. He was able to block the next four shots from the remote, after which the device shut itself off.

"You do know that in real combat, the enemy won't stop once you turn off your lighstaber," Jacen's voice echoed through the training room. "You were doing very well at the end there. You should be proud of your progress."

Ben basked in his cousin's praise. "I've been practicing every day," he said.

"It's definitely working. Do you want to go again? I can probably give you some pointers," said Jacen. Ben nodded and put on his helmet again. He heard the remote whir back to life. He assumed the defensive posture his father had taught him and tried to focus on the Force. It didn't work. Ben missed all but one of the first five shots. "Don't give up, just keep trying," he heard his cousin say. Ben readied himself for another round. This time, he managed to block three shots. They continued for close to an hour, and by the end, Ben was able to dodge or deflect nearly all of the bolts.

"Jacen, I'm getting tired. Can we be finished now?"

"Sure." Ben waited until he heard the remote power down this time before he shut off his training lightsaber. He really didn't want Jacen to pull the same trick on him twice. "You really are doing well, you know," said Jacen.

"Thanks. So, what do I need to work on?" Ben asked as they left the sparring room.

"Your motions are too large. You tend to keep your blade a long way from your body, which works well with one opponent, but if there were two I'm not sure you would be able to block both of their shots. Also, your footwork is a little sloppy, but that will get better as you continue to practice." Ben nodded, making a mental note to work on both of these later.

"How old were you when you made your first lightsaber?" asked Ben.

Jacen smiled down at him. "Is this what all the practicing is all about? You wanting to build a lightsaber?" Ben nodded. "I think I was probably fourteen, maybe fifteen." Ben sighed in exasperation. He wouldn't be fourteen for another four years. That was far too long to wait to build his own weapon. Jacen picked up on his disappointment. "Don't worry, though. I was a lot older than you when I started training, and I don't think I practiced as much with a training saber before I built mine. I bet your dad will let you start pretty soon."

Ben brightened at this. Maybe he could convince Mom that having a lightsaber was a good way to keep safe when he went on missions with Jacen. That way, he could go on the exciting missions that he usually had to stay on Ossus for because his parents thought they were too dangerous for a ten-year-old. If Mom was convinced that Ben having a lightsaber was a good idea, Dad would have to agree.

Jacen's voice interrupted his planning. "Did I ever tell you how Jaina, Anakin, and I used to practice when we first got our lightsabers?" Ben shook his head, excited to heart this story. Nobody in his family ever mentioned his cousin Anakin, who had died when Ben was a baby, and he loved hearing stories about his cousin. "We used to shoot at each other with Dad's blaster to see if the other ones could deflect the bolts. We always set it to stun, but if you got hit, it hurt a lot more than the remote's blasts." Jacen laughed at the memory. "One time, Anakin got hit three times in about the same spot, and he couldn't feel or move his arm for a couple days."

"What did your mom do then?" Ben asked.

"Mom didn't know about that game. I'm pretty sure Dad knew what we were doing, but he never said anything about it. We just let Anakin suffer and teased him mercilessly for missing so many bolts." Jacen looked a little sad at the memory of his brother. Ben didn't have any siblings, but he imagined that it would be terrible to have anybody you loved that much die.

"The Force tells me that the cafeteria has topato soup and choya bread for dinner today," he said, trying to draw Jacen's attention to something happier.

Jacen snorted. "No it doesn't. You just read the menu earlier."

Ben didn't reply to that statement. He had read the menu, but he wasn't going to admit that to his cousin. They stepped into the turbolift together, and Ben pressed the button for the cafeteria level. He was hungry after his sparring session with the remote. He needed to eat if he was going to do the same thing tomorrow.

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A/N: There's the seemingly requisite training remote scene – I hope you liked it. Even if you didn't, thanks for reading! Special thanks to NoImagination and Loteva for reviewing! It's fantastic to know what people think of my writing.


	4. Fancy Footwork

Age: 8 standard years

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Jacen stared at the shoes in his closet, willing them away. It didn't work. The new brown dancing shoes stayed exactly where they were. Leia had specifically requested of him that he take dancing lessons before her birthday party in two months, and like any good son, he could hardly say no to his mother. He gave up, putting on his shoes and walking into the living area of his small apartment. Ben was already waiting for him, excited for their first day of dance lessons. "Let's go!" Ben said, bounding out of the apartment. Jacen followed his cousin, not at all looking forward to this class.

They walked together to the school where the lessons would be held. Once they were inside, Jacen busied himself by studying the other dancers. Though the studio offered more species-inclusive courses, this class was aimed at humanoids, so most of their classmates were human. About three quarters of the class was made up of couples Jacen's age and older, though there were some single people present as well. Jacen estimated that he was about average age for the class. Ben was by far the youngest participant.

Shortly after he finished scanning the crowd, the instructor, a female Duros who introduced herself as Channa, called the class to order. After some brief instructions, she instructed the single people to pair up. A woman who appeared to be about ninety partnered up with Ben, and Jacen found himself dancing with a dark-haired human woman around his age.

They started with a simple dance. Jacen was glad for his years of lightsaber training, as the footwork was similar to the drills Luke had used for practice. Unlike most of the students who had to stare at their feet to avoid stepping on the other dancers' toes, he was able to carry on a conversation with his partner. He learned that the woman's name was Doreen and that she worked as a consultant for one of Coruscant's major accounting firms. Though she had been born and raised on Coruscant, she had only recently moved back, having evacuated to Corellia when the Yuuzhan Vong had attacked her homeworld. Jacen gave only roundabout answers to Doreen's questions about his life. He didn't want the conversation to revolve entirely around him, so he said only that he was also originally from Coruscant and traveled quite a bit for his studies. None of it was actually a lie, but it was also far from the whole truth.

Soon enough, the first lesson was over. Doreen told him goodbye, slipping him a sheet of flimsi with her comm number on it. She seemed nice, but Jacen had no intention of calling her. He found Ben, and together they walked back to Jacen's apartment. "So, how did you like it?" asked Jacen.

"It was great! I really liked that last dance we did. I can't wait for the next lesson!" his cousin answered. Ben was always eager to try new things, and ballroom dancing had been no different. Although Jacen would never admit it, he had enjoyed himself as well. He had been able to have an interesting conversation that did not involve a mission and had not needed to think about any of his responsibilities as a Jedi for an hour. He wasn't as excited as Ben, but he was looking forward to the next lesson.

* * *

"I think you disappointed your mother," Mara stated matter-of-factly as they finished a spin. Jacen racked his brain, trying to think of what he could have done to make Leia upset. He'd shown up on time to her birthday party, dressed as she had requested, with a gift. He hadn't missed anything recently, had he? Mara noticed her nephew's confusion and laughed. "You're missing the obvious, Solo," she said.

"What did I kriff up this time?" he asked.

"That's not appropriate language for your mother's birthday party," Mara said sweetly, dodging the question.

Jacen played along. "It's Luke's birthday too. Kriffing is probably to clean of language for any former member of Rogue Squadron's party."

"We both know who wanted the party." Mara decided she'd made Jacen wait long enough. "I think your mother was hoping you would bring a young lady along." Jacen froze. That was not what he'd been expecting. Mara laughed at his reaction. "I think you could make up for it by giving her a grandchild for her next birthday," she teased.

That prospect was terrifying. "Are you kidding?" Jacen asked. He hoped she was. Fatherhood was not something he wanted to consider right now.

Mara shook her head. "Think for a minute, Jacen. Why did Leia have you sign up for those dancing lessons?"

"To learn how to ballroom dance? Anyway, she sent Ben with me, so she couldn't have been hoping I would meet somebody there."

His aunt snorted. "She had Ben sign up too to show all the girls there how fantastic of father material you are. She also gave you a plus-one on your invitation, which she was actually pretty disappointed that you didn't use. Trust me, she's trying to get you married off."

Jacen let go of his aunt's hands for another spin, taking the opportunity to glance over to where his parents were dancing together. His mother didn't look upset, and seemed to be enjoying her party, but Jacen could sense that Mara's words were true. When he finished the spin, he found that his aunt was no longer there. He spotted her a second later, dancing with Luke. Mara winked at him, then glanced pointedly at a pretty blond woman standing next to the punch bowl.

_It's Mom's birthday, I might as well make her happy_, Jacen thought as he walked over to the woman. "Care to dance?" he asked. The woman accepted, and they waltzed together.

If Jacen had looked at Leia, he would have noticed her watching as he danced and chatted with the attractive young woman. Leia smiled, glad to see that her son was making good use of those ballroom dancing lessons.

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A/N: Loteva suggested a birthday chapter, and I was already thinking about doing a dancing chapter, and somehow they combined and this was born. I really hope you liked it. Thanks to everyone for reading, and extra thanks to Loteva, Jacen, and NoImagination for reviewing! By the way, I was asked whether or not I was taking requests, so I thought I should let you all know that I love suggestions! Please leave ideas in the review or PM me if you'd prefer. Requests save me from actually having to be creative and are always welcome.

Also, before anyone criticizes the timeline of this chapter with regards to Jacen's ideas on parenthood, this piece takes place around Luke and Leia's 55th birthday. This should occur between the events of The Joiner King and The Unseen Queen. Anyway, until next time,

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	5. Sick Day

Age: 11 standard years

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Usually, when Mom and Dad were in meetings, Ben was allowed to stay home alone. But today, Jaina was staying with him because he was sick. Ben didn't think he needed his cousin there – after all, he was eleven years old, not a little kid anymore like his parents seemed to think, but it was nice to have some company during the day. They had played a few rounds of sabacc that morning, and when his ever-competitive cousin had beaten him soundly, Ben had blamed his loss on being sick. He wasn't horribly sick, having only a runny nose, cough, and a mild fever, but it had been a good excuse for losing. After that, Jaina had fixed him lunch and told him to take a nap. He usually would have protested that he didn't need to sleep, but today he was tired enough that he went without complaint.

When he woke up, he was surprised to hear a male voice as well as Jaina's coming from the next room. He walked in to find Jacen sitting on the Skywalkers's living room sofa. "How are you feeling?" Jacen asked as he entered.

"I've been better," said Ben. His nose was running again, so Jacen handed him a box of tissues. After blowing his nose, he added, "I think I'll feel good again tomorrow."

"I'm sure you will," Jacen said. He turned back to Jaina. "When do you have to head out?"

"1600 hours." Jaina glanced down at her chrono. "I've got a little time left. Want to play another round of sabacc?" She winked at Ben with a huge grin on her face. He scowled back at her.

Jacen noted their exchange. "How badly did she beat you earlier?"

"I think killed is a more appropriate term in this case," said Jaina. "Want another shot at victory?"

"She cheats, you know," said Jacen. "I'm not sure how she does it, but I know she does." A pillow flew across the room to hit him in the back of the head. "Ouch! Jaina, if you're going to throw things at me, at least do it yourself. No fair using the Force."

"I don't cheat!" Jaina exclaimed, and the pillow hit Jacen again. She turned back to their younger cousin. "I really don't, I'm just better at it than he is and he won't accept it."

"Okay, I'm just a terrible sabacc player," Jacen admitted. Two pillows and one of the couch cushions were now whacking him in a seemingly random sequence. "Will you stop now?"

Jaina allowed the cushion and pillows to drop. "I accept your apology," she said. "I've got probably fifty minutes, maybe an hour until I need to leave, what do you want to do?" she asked Ben, who shrugged.

"Sure, we can play sabacc again," he answered. Jaina walked into the kitchen to retrieve the deck and chips, then shuffled and dealt the cards.

Ben surveyed his hand. It was completely terrible. "Bespin Standard?" he asked. Jaina and Jacen looked at each other before nodding. That was bad. If either one had a poor hand, they would have argued for a different variant. Ben decided that his best strategy was to distract his cousins. "Where are you going?"

"Ord Mantell. There's been some piracy on the surrounding trade routes. Intelligence is pretty sure that the remnants of Black Sun are at least supplying the pirates and might actually be running the whole enterprise. They think it's a big enough venture that shutting down the pirates might shut down the organization." Jaina didn't look up from her cards as she spoke. She took her sabacc very seriously.

"They'll just be replaced with some other crime syndicate," said Jacen.

"Aren't you just Mister Optimist?" Jaina replied sarcastically. "Ready for betting stage?" When nobody said no, Jaina started. "I'll go with five."

Ben decided he would fold. No reason to lose more than the ante on his terrible hand. Jacen raised to nine. Jaina matched, and Jacen smirked as he laid down his cards. "Twenty-three," he gloated. "Pure sabacc." He started to reach for the sabacc pot, but Jaina grabbed his hand.

"Idiot's array," she said in a falsely sweet voice. Ben laughed at the look on Jacen's face.

"I told you she cheats," moped Jacen as Jaina collected her winnings. She smacked him.

Ben yawned. It had only been a short game, but he was completely worn out. Jaina threw him pitying glance. "You should go back to sleep," she said. Ben nodded and got up. Jaina intercepted him for a quick hug before he could go into his bedroom again. "Take it easy these next few days, okay? Let yourself get better." She checked her chrono again. It was time to go. "I'll see you in a couple weeks. Then you won't have any excuse for losing at sabacc. You be good," she said, pointing her finger at Jacen, who just shrugged.

"Not going to make any promises," he replied. "Stay safe."

"I will. All right, see you later!" With that, Jaina left. Ben trudged into his room and collapsed onto his bed. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

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A/N: Loteva suggested that Ben or Jacen have a cold. When combined with this story's desperate need for some Jaina, this happened. Thank you for reading – I really hope you liked it! Thanks to Loteva, NoImagination, and TrueNorther for writing a review! See you again soon.

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	6. The Problem With Domestic Bliss

Age: 8.5 standard years

* * *

Ben sat outside the Council chambers, waiting for his parents to be done with their meeting. He had already counted all 496 of the tiles in the waiting area and practiced headstands. He had also looked for secret passageways. Ben knew that there must be some secret passages in the Temple just like on the _Millennium Falcon_, but he hadn't found any yet. What was taking so long anyway? Usually Ben would read while his parents were in their meetings, but today he had forgotten his datapad in the apartment. He wasn't allowed to go back by himself to get it and Nana had been in the repair shop since the roseberry jam incident, so he was stuck with nothing to do until this meeting was over. He tried doing the breathing exercise that Jacen had taught him last week, but it didn't work, and he was still bored.

After what seemed like an eternity, the door finally opened, and Mom came walking out. She looked frustrated, but she gave Ben a little smile. "Ready to go?" she asked.

Ben nodded and took her hand. They walked together to the speeder. "Where's Dad?" asked Ben. After meetings, the three of them would walk to the speeder then pick up food on their way home.

"He'll be here in a few minutes," his mother replied. Something in her tone told Ben that Mom didn't really want to talk right now, so he kept quiet. Mara played with her red hair, making soft hmmphing noises once in a while that Ben didn't think she realized she was making. Dad came to the car a few minutes later, and he drove them all home in silence. When Ben saw that they were headed for the apartment, he wanted to remind Dad that they hadn't gotten dinner yet, but the atmosphere in the speeder was so tense that he decided not to say anything.

Dinner was equally tense. Both Mom and Dad talked to Ben, but neither said a word to each other. Ben excused himself early from the dinner table and went straight to bed. Mom and Dad were angry with each other, and it made Ben uncomfortable to be in the room with them. He tossed and turned all night, worrying. His parents loved each other; they shouldn't be mad. Was it something he had done? Ben thought over the last few days, but couldn't think of anything particularly terrible he'd done that would cause a reaction like this. Did Mom and Dad still love each other? His friend Dharvis's parents had decided they didn't love each other and then they chose not to be married anymore. Now Dharvis only saw one of them at a time. Maybe that was what Mom and Dad would do. Ben wanted to cry when he thought about his parents getting a divorce. He pressed his face into his pillow and sobbed, scared about what might happen tomorrow.

* * *

At breakfast, Mom and Dad still didn't talk. Ben was now certain they were getting divorced. Dad walked him to the sparring rooms to meet Jacen, kissing Ben on the top of the head as he dropped him off. Ben had been excited to try the training lightsaber for the first time, but today he was much less enthusiastic. He halfheartedly did the drills that Jacen showed him for about half an hour before his cousin told him to take a water break.

"What's wrong Ben?" Jacen asked as they sipped from their water bottles.

Ben felt his chin start to quiver even before he spoke. "Mom and Dad are getting a divorce," he said.

Jacen's eyebrows shot up in shock, but then the calm look he usually wore quickly replaced his surprised expression. "Did you see that in the holozines?"

"No, Mom says not to listen to those. They are really mad at each other and don't love each other anymore so they're getting a divorce," Ben explained. He looked down at his lap, not wanting to look at his cousin anymore.

Jacen put a finger under his chin, pushing up until they were looking eye-to-eye again. "I think your parents probably just had an argument," he said. "I don't think they're actually separating."

"No, my parents don't argue," Ben countered, "They love each other too much."

"Sometimes you argue even with the people you love the most." Ben looked up at that.

He whispered his next question. "Which one of them is right?"

Jacen let Ben's question hang in the air for a few heartbeats before he answered. "Probably there isn't actually a right answer to whatever they're arguing about. In a lot of problems about right and wrong, two very smart people can come to completely opposite answers. It's not so much what is objectively right, but more a matter of what each person's experiences cause them to think is right. Does that make sense?"

Ben nodded slowly. "So, Mom and Dad aren't getting a divorce?"

Jacen smiled. "I don't think so."

"Okay! Let's go practice with the lightsabers some more." Ben already felt far better. He sprinted back to the center of the room where he had left his training lightsaber. Jacen followed him at a more reasonable pace. For the next three hours, the two cousins worked their way through the most basic lightsaber drills. When they were done, Ben wrapped Jacen in a tight hug.

"Thank you," he said. A few minutes later, he asked, "Jacen, is being an adult confusing?"

Jacen laughed and nodded. That was the most honest answer he could give.

* * *

A/N: I fully intended for this to be canon compliant, but since the Star Wars authors made absolutely no attempt to give Ben (or Allana) normal childhood friendships, I feel justified in adding my own original character to be Ben's friend. I suspect you will see Dharvis again. Anyway, before I start ranting about the lack of solid characterization in DNT, LotF and FoTJ, let me thank you for reading. Also, special thanks to NoImagination and Loteva for reviewing. It's fantastic to know what people think of my writing! If you have anything special you'd like to see, please feel free to send me a prompt. Until next time,

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	7. Welcome Back

Age: 11 standard years

Ben waved happily at his mother from his seat in the cockpit as he and Jacen finished the post-flight checklist. Mara waved back, glad to see her son again. She had worried so much about him while he was gone. When they were finished, he bounded down the boarding ramp and into her arms.

"I missed you," he said.

"I missed you too, sweetie." Not letting go of her son, she turned to Jacen. "Are you two done here?" Jacen nodded. "Care for some lunch?"

Mara finally released Ben, and the three of them drove together to the Galaxy Grill, a restaurant Mara remembered from her days as the Emperor's Hand. Once they were seated and had ordered their drinks, Mara decided it was time to ask them about their mission. "So, how was Joralla?"

"Hot" was Ben's one word reply.

Mara snorted. "You should've known that was coming when you read the place was tropical. I mean, how was your mission?" She looked over to Jacen, becoming concerned when her nephew would make eye contact with her.

"It was awesome! All these Tikiarri attacked us one night. There were like a hundred of them, and they had blasters and they wanted to kill us, but Jacen fought them off. Jacen deflected four bolts all at the same time! When can I learn to do that?" Mara's jaw dropped at Ben's story. This mission was not supposed to be dangerous. The Tikiarri had wanted to have a child examined to determine if she was Force-sensitive. Luke had decided that the errand would be a suitable first mission for Ben, allowing him to witness a Jedi's duties firsthand with little threat of danger.

Ben must have noticed her shock, because he ended his story abruptly. He paused for a few seconds, then added, "But it's okay. Neither of us got hurt."

She turned her attention towards Jacen, who was now staring back at her, his features set in a mask of grim determination. He was afraid of how she was going to react. Good. She decided to stay calm for now. She could always kill her nephew later if she was still angry. "Why did these Tokiarii want to kill you?"

To her surprise, Jacen answered first. "There was a powerful movement against the Galactic Alliance that was new enough that it hadn't yet been documented by Intelligence. They attacked us because of the Jedi's relationship with the GA." Ben nodded. Oh, good. Now she only had to kill a few of Intelligence's more inept workers. It was probably better this way. She was supposed to meet Leia for drinks in a few days, and her sister-in-law might be upset if Mara had killed her son.

Jacen was still watching her worriedly. Mara smiled warmly at him. "Thank you for taking such good care of Ben. I feel much better knowing that you're with him in these kinds of situations." She hoped Jacen could sense the truth in her words.

Ben's stomach growled. "When do you think the food will be here?" he asked. Mara checked her chrono.

"We've only been waiting for ten minutes," she answered. "It'll probably be a while."

"But I'm hungry!"

Mara smiled. "Patience, you must have, my young apprentice." Her son groaned.

"Now you sound like Dad. Anyway, I don't think that's even a real quote!" Jacen laughed at Ben's outburst. Their conversation lulled until their food arrived. Mara thought of the errands she needed to run after she dropped off Ben and Jacen. A trip to Intelligence headquarters was definitely in order.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the wait everybody! A new Hunger Games fic has been taking a lot of my time the last couple days. Anyway, thanks for reading. The ever-wonderful Loteva suggested that Jacen intervenes when someone tries to hurt or kidnap Ben. How could I resist that opportunity to insert super-protective Mara? Thank you to Loteva, NoImagination, and SiouxFan for reviewing! Catch you later,

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	8. Family Fun Times

Age: 12 standard years

* * *

"Why, exactly, are we suddenly celebrating a holiday that I've never heard of?" Ben was excited to see his aunt and uncle, but he still didn't understand why the family was getting together for Corellian New Year.

"Because your uncle is being sentimental," Jacen replied.

Ben looked to Jaina for a more informative answer. "He's missing Corellia. Also, a New Year's party gives him the chance to drink as much Whyren's Reserve as he wants with minimal scolding from Mom."

"What are we going to do?" he asked. Because the Solos didn't have their own apartment, most family gatherings were held at his family's home. This was the first time Ben had gone to his aunt and uncle's hotel room for a party, and he didn't know what to expect.

Apparently, neither did Jacen and Jaina. They glanced at each other, but then Jaina turned back to look at him and shrugged. "I really don't know. Dad used to celebrate when we were kids, but he usually just went out with Wedge or Corran to some of the local Corellian cantinas. I have no idea what a family-friendly New Year's celebration will be like."

"Will it be family friendly?" Jacen asked worriedly. "He did say Ben was invited, right?"

"Yeah, at least I think so," Jaina answered. "If not, I nominate him to be our designated driver for the evening." Ben stayed quiet. The more his cousins said, the more interesting this party sounded.

Three minor traffic jams later, they arrived at the Solos' hotel. After checking in with the front desk, Ben, Jacen, and Jaina were led by a security droid up to Han and Leia's floor. Leia must have been waiting just on the other side of the door, because she opened the door and pulled Ben into a tight hug before he could even knock. "Ben! It's so nice to see you again!" Leia quickly moved on to Jaina and Jacen, embracing both of them before leading them inside. "Your parents should be here soon," she said, checking her chrono.

"After all, it just isn't a party without Luke," Jaina said teasingly.

"Oh hush." Leia was obviously trying to sound scolding, but her smile betrayed that she wasn't serious.

Han emerged from the suite's small kitchen area. "Hello,everyone," he said. He pointed to Ben. "The boy didn't listen to you and kept growing."

"He is looking taller, isn't he?" Leia replied. "Oh no, is he taller than me?" She stood back to back with Ben as her husband and children tried to determine which one was taller.

"I think he's got you, Mom," Jacen said. "Now you're the shortest one again." Han and Jaina laughed at Leia's comically sour expression.

Ben followed the rest of the family into the kitchen, where Threepio was busily slicing up vegetables and adding them to a pot. Next to the pot, he noticed a half-empty bottle of Whyman's Reserve. Soon enough, his parents arrived. He hugged his mom and dad and sat back down at the kitchen table, which was covered in a large green tablecloth in honor of the holiday. The food smelled wonderful, and Ben could feel his stomach start to rumble. He tried to clench his stomach muscles to stop the sound, but his aunt noticed and winked at him. "Don't worry, dinner will be ready soon."

About twenty minutes later, they were all seated at the dinner table eating spiceloaf. Ben was not quite hungry enough to actually eat his aunt's cooking, so he ate a few small bites and moved the rest of it around his plate. Suddenly, he felt something wet hit his forearm. A glob of spiceloaf sat on his bare skin. Ben quickly wiped it off and glared across the table at Jacen. His cousin looked confused for a moment, then gestured wordlessly towards his twin sister. Jaina smiled sweetly at him. Ben waited until his parents and aunt's attention was away from him to catapult a piece of his own uneaten spice loaf at Jaina. Their food fight continued, and eventually Jacen joined in.

Han made a quiet hissing noise, and Jaina immediately dropped the spoonful of food she'd been ready to launch at her cousin. Ben was surprised his uncle had noticed their game. His uncle nodded towards Leia, who had turned her attention back to her children. "Where is Zekk, dear?" she asked Jaina.

Ben stifled a snort as Jaina blushed. "He was busy," she offered. "He had stuff to do at the Temple."

"Surely he could have taken a little break for New Year," said Leia. Jaina shrugged, and surprisingly Leia allowed the matter to drop. The rest of the dinner passed without incident. Ben watched as his family drank more and more of the Corellian brandy that Uncle Han had poured at the beginning of the meal. He was sure he was going to have to hear the stories of the Rebellion that Dad and Uncle Han always traded after they had been drinking.

He helped Leia and Threepio clean off the table while Jaina and Han did the dishes. Mom and Dad needed to talk to Jacen about an upcoming mission. Once they were finished, the entire group congregated in the living room. Han turned to Ben. "So, kid, did I ever tell you about the time I made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs?"

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading! SiouxFan left a request for more Jacen/Ben/Jaina interaction possibly involving a dinner. Thank you so much to Loteva and NoImagination for reviewing! I really appreciate your feedback and would love it if you could leave a review. Thanks again for reading!

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	9. Jailhouse Blues

A/N: Hi everybody! I received several questions/requests after the last chapter, so I thought I'd take this chance to answer them publicly.

**Guest**: I love that idea! However, I think I'd write it as a separate oneshot, because I want this story to stay as close to canon-compliant as is reasonably possible. Be on the lookout for something like that though – it sounds awesome!

**NoImagination: **I have the most fantastically creative reviewers, always thinking up great chapter ideas so I don't actually have to be creative myself. Thank you so much for the suggestion! That chapter could be fantastic! In response to your question about Ben outgrowing Leia at 12, Carrie Fisher is 5'1" (or 185 cm for anybody who likes to use a reasonable system of measurement). My mother is the same height and I outgrew her at age ten (and am not super tall), so this seemed reasonable to me. It's a good general rule of thumb to not get me started on the extended Jaina love triangle. She's a responsible grown woman, but for some reason spends 10+ years of her life struggling over which man to date. Really!? Even _Twilight_ got resolved faster than that! *alternately hyperventilates and grumbles about characterization*

* * *

Age: 9 standard years

Ben made a mental note to himself, _anytime Dharvis says "don't worry, it'll be awesome," don't agree to whatever he just suggested_. He really should stop going along with the plans his friend proposed. It would've saved him a lot of trouble.

He vividly remembered their conversation over breakfast that morning. "You know what we should do?" Dharvis had asked. Ben could still see the excitement in his friend's red eyes. He should have known right then that this wasn't a good idea, but he had only nodded and waited to Dharvis to finish. "We should sneak into the kitchens and add harima sauce to all the desserts."

"That would taste terrible."

"That's the point. It'd be hilarious." Dharvis laughed. "Can you picture everybody's reactions?"

Ben took another bite as he thought his friend's plan over. It did sound like a lot of fun. "How would we get in without being noticed? A redheaded human and a Duros will definitely stick out in a room full of droids."

"They're kitchen droids, Ben. They probably don't have enough processing power to realize we aren't supposed to be there." Dharvis took Ben's silence as agreement. "Okay, let's go right after we're done."

* * *

As it turned out, the kitchen droids not only could tell they didn't belong, but also had very strong security programming. When they had seen the two boys placing an unknown compound into the dessert mix, one had immediately set the kitchen into lockdown mode while the others had cornered them. The apprentices who responded had understood that Ben and Dharvis weren't actually trying to poison the food, but they had still escorted the boys to the detention center. Now, they were waiting for their parents to pick them up. Ben didn't even want to think about how disappointed Dad would be when he found out what he'd done. He didn't know why, but Dad's disappointment always hurt more than if he was actually angry.

Dharvis apologized again. Ben waved it off. He wasn't mad at his friend. Yes, he wished that he hadn't gone along with the plan, but Ben needed to be responsible for his own actions. Dharvis's mom came first. His friend waved goodbye and left the holding cell. Ben was left all alone with his worries.

To his surprise, Jacen came instead of his parents. "The Council meeting doesn't get out for at least another hour, and the apprentices didn't want to disturb your parents," explained Jacen. "I was the first one on your contact list that was on-planet and available."

Ben honestly didn't care why Jacen was here; he was just happy that his cousin had come instead of his parents. "So, I bet you already heard what I did, right?" he asked solemnly.

Jacen nodded. "I would like to hear it from your point of view, though," he said.

Ben hadn't expected that response. "Well, it was kind of stupid," he began. "Dharvis and I were at breakfast when he said we should put some harima sauce in the dessert batter. So we snuck into the kitchen and were doing exactly that when the droids caught us and accused us of trying to poison everybody. The apprentices knew that we weren't really, but they sent us down here to teach us a lesson." He hung his head at the end of the story, ashamed by his behavior.

"It's not me you need to apologize to," Jacen said. They reached the turbolift and Jacen punched the button for the kitchen levels. "I think you owe the droids an apology, don't you?" Ben swallowed nervously. He didn't really want to go back there so soon. "Part of being a Jedi is doing what's right, even if it's not what you want," said Jacen. Ben wondered if his cousin had learned to read minds over his five-year journey.

Far too soon, they were standing outside the kitchen. Jacen nodded towards the door, and Ben went in by himself. He tapped on the doorframe to get the droids' attention. The room quickly quieted, and all the photoreceptors in the room were on him. "I'm really sorry for what I did earlier. It wasn't a responsible thing to do and I hope you can forgive me for causing you all that trouble." Ben shifted his weight from foot to foot as he spoke.

The droid in charge of the pastry station spoke first. "You are forgiven. Please do nothing of this sort again." The other droids nodded their assent and when straight back to their assigned tasks. Understanding that he was dismissed, Ben ducked out of the room.

"Ready?" his cousin asked.

"Yep." They walked together up to the Council chambers. His parents' meeting should be done soon. "So, now that I've apologized, we don't have to tell Mom and Dad about this, right?" Ben asked hopefully.

Jacen snorted. "You wish." Ben shrugged. It had been worth a try.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! Extra thanks to my fabulous reviewers – Loteva, NoImagination, and the ever-so-creatively-named Guest. Reviews are always welcome, and I also appreciate ideas for next chapters! See you again soon,

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	10. Teetering on the Edge

Age: 12 standard years

Jacen reached out to Ben with the Force, allowing their minds to connect and bind together. Though it was almost second nature to him, Ben had never joined a Force meld before, and Jacen was worried about the effect it would have on his cousin. The hate, fear, and pain Ben had felt during the Yuuzhan Vong War had been enough to make him withdraw from the Force for years. Would he have the same reaction to sensing Jacen hurting another sentient?

He forced those worries away. They had practiced this scenario several times on their way to Desevro, and each of their simulations had gone well. Until possibilities became reality, they were only that, just possibilities. Jacen would handle any situations as they came.

"Ready?" he asked. Ben nodded, his grave expression out of place on his boyish face. "Let's go then." Jacen checked that he had his lightsaber, comlink, stokhli stick, and several pairs of stun cuffs before he lead his cousin into the abandoned warehouse. Intelligence suspected this warehouse was being used as temporary storage space for a band of pirates that had been terrorizing ships along the Perlemian Trade Route. Hopefully, he and Ben would be able to capture some of the leaders and bring them in for trial on Coruscant. If everything went smoothly, this should be a fairly simple mission. They would ambush the pirates, stunning and binding them before transporting their prisoners into the prison deck of their borrowed Intelligence transport. He and Ben should be back on Coruscant in three days.

Jacen still felt nervous. He had tried to peer into the future a few times during their journey and had not seen any future where a pirate hurt Ben, but he could not shake the feeling that something would go wrong.

"I'm going to hide behind these boxes, right?" asked Ben, pointing to an enormous stack of crates. Jacen nodded, and the boy disappeared behind the boxes. After checking that he couldn't see his cousin from the open space in the center of the warehouse, Jacen slipped behind his own pile of crates and waited for the pirates to appear.

He didn't have to wait very long. After only twenty minutes, Jacen heard the first set of footsteps. He quickly turned on the audio recorder that they had been assigned, hoping to pick up any conversation that could lead them to the other pirates. Unfortunately, these criminals were well organized and efficient, and barely spoke as they unloaded their loot. When he sensed that the pirates were almost done, Jacen reached out to Ben through the meld, _come on, it's time_. Ben wouldn't be able to understand the individual words, but hopefully he'd get the idea.

Jacen leaped out from behind the boxes with his lightsaber lit. He pointed his stokhli stick at the Togruta who appeared to be the pirates' leader. "Put down your weapons," he ordered, "or I will kill you."

Why did his opponents never heed this threat? A Rodian pointed his blaster at Jacen and fired. Jacen deflected the bolt into the alien's chest. The rest of the pirates seemed to take this as a cue to take out their own weapons. Jacen was surprised by the savagery of their attack. He deflected hundreds of blaster bolts and dodged an array of other projectiles. The pirates were no match for a Jedi Knight, and they soon realized it. Some began to put down their weapons in surrender after seeing their comrades fall from deflected blaster bolts. The battle was all but over.

Suddenly, Jacen felt a sharp pain in his left leg. He felt his knees buckle and put a hand out to stop his fall, only to realize that he was still standing and uninjured. _Ben, _he thought. Ben must be hurt. Still fighting off the pirates, he strengthened the link with his cousin. Ben had crawled back behind the crates, but he had taken a blaster bolt to his left shin. He was in no danger of dying, but he did need medical attention soon if the wound was to heal properly.

Jacen reached out to the minds of all the remaining pirates, subtly reminding them that they would not win. Soon, almost all of them had dropped their weapons. He quickly unarmed the rest of them and sprayed them with his stokhli stick. Once all of the pirates were bound and carefully locked in the prison hold, Jacen came back for his cousin.

"Are you okay?"

Ben grimaced. Jacen could see that the boy's face was white with pain. "No." Ben was fighting back tears as Jacen rolled up his left pant leg.

"Kriff." The entire area was red and agitated, and the actual wound itself was burnt black. "How did you even get this?"

"When you were deflecting –" Ben clapped a hand over the wound and bit down on his lower lip. Jacen understood. His cousin must have come out during the fight, hoping to lend Jacen a hand in finishing off the pirates. Instead, he'd been hit with friendly fire.

"I'm so sorry, Ben." He didn't know what else to say. Ben had been his responsibility, and Jacen had hurt him.

His cousin nodded. "It's okay. Can you help me back onto the ship? I don't think I can walk right now." Jacen lifted his cousin using the Force and levitated him into the medbay of their transport. He rubbed some bacta onto the burn. What would Mara say? No, Jacen knew exactly what she and Luke would think. They would decide that Jacen could not take care of Ben, that he wasn't ready or responsible enough to have their son as his apprentice. Ben would no longer come on missions with him.

Jacen would not allow that to happen. "Ben, I'm going to help you into a healing trance, all right?" Ben nodded, and Jacen guided him into a deep trance. Once he was certain the boy wouldn't wake up, he placed a hand on his forehead. He located the memory of the injury and carefully removed it. If the boy had questions later, he could always explain it away as a bump on the head. Jacen checked Ben's injury. Though it looked terrible now, it should be back to normal after a three day healing trance. Luke and Mara would never have to know.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! NoImagination suggested that I write a 'mission gone wrong' where either Ben or Jacen accidentally injures the other. I'm so sorry for what happened after, but I really wanted to add a bit of darker Jacen, see a side of him that seems like it could turn into Caedus. Anyway, thanks to NoImagination and Loteva for reviewing. I love feedback and chapter ideas! Thanks again for reading!

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	11. Technical Difficulties

Age: 10 standard years

"What's wrong, Ben?" asked his father before he even spoke. Ben never failed to be surprised by just how quickly his dad could go from fast asleep to wide awake.

"Umm… well, you see, IthinkImighthavebrokenthedatapad" Ben blurted out.

Luke looked at him and shook his head. "I'm sorry, I couldn't make out a word you just said. Could you repeat yourself, a bit slower this time?"

After a deep breath, Ben said, "I'm really sorry Dad, but I think I might have broken the datapad and I really need to finish my homework."

"What time is it?" Luke checked the chrono next to his bed then turned back to his son. "Ben, what are you even doing up? It's three in the morning."

"I'm sorry. I forgot this assignment I was supposed to do, and then I fell asleep and had a nightmare about not having it done, so I got up and went straight to work. I'm almost done, but something happened and now the datapad is off and it won't turn on again. Please don't be mad."

Luke groaned and ruffled his hair. It was too early for this. "Is this assignment due today?" he asked.

"Yes," Ben whispered, looking down at his feet.

"Okay, let's go figure this thing out." Luke hauled himself out of bed and walked into the living room with Ben. He noticed the guilty expression on his son's face. "Don't worry about it, Ben. I know you didn't mean to break the datapad. Yes, we'll have to have a conversation about being responsible for your schoolwork later, but right now let's focus on getting this thing fixed."

Ben nodded. "Do you know how to fix datapads?"

"I don't think I've ever worked on a datapad specifically, but yes, I have a basic understanding of how to fix a computer."

After two hours of tinkering and swearing, Luke had to admit that he did not actually know how to fix datapads. "Just how big of a deal is this assignment?" he asked Ben. If this wasn't too important, he might just give up and have them both go back to bed. It probably wouldn't teach Ben the best lesson, but right now he didn't care.

"I have to present about it tomorrow." Ben checked the chrono. "Actually, I guess I have to present my project today."

Luke swore. "Don't tell your mother I said that in front of you," he warned Ben. "Are you at a point where you still need to do research, or could you make do with what you've got?"

"I still need to do more. See?" Ben held out a piece of flimsi that had a total of six bullet points on it.

"This is 'almost done' with your project?" Ben wilted under his father's glare, but he quickly recovered.

"I'm really sorry, Dad. I forgot about it, honest! I could've finished it before you woke up, but the datapad broke." Ben's apology was sincere. He had been putting off his homework for a while, but he really had forgotten to do it before he went to bed.

Luke couldn't stay angry at his son for long. "It's fine, Ben. What steps can we take to fix this problem?"

"We could call Jacen! He's really smart, maybe he knows how to fix the datapad!" Ben was proud of his idea.

His son's remark stung. It bothered him that Ben seemed to look up to Jacen as a father figure. Also, Jacen was not at all technically inclined, and probably had even less of an idea than he did of how to fix the datapad. "That's not a half bad idea, Ben, but I think Jacen probably wants to sleep in a bit."

"No, he doesn't. It's 0520. Jacen's always up by now. Come on, Dad, let's call him." Ben ran into his parents' bedroom and returned with his father's comlink, dialing Jacen's code in from memory before passing it to his father.

Luke sighed, but he accepted the comlink and reluctantly called his nephew. "Hello, Jacen," he said. "I'm really sorry to bother you, but if you're not too busy, could you bring your datapad over? Ben's got a big project due later today, and we're having technical difficulties." Jacen was more than willing to come over. "Thank you so much. See you soon." He ended the call and turned back to his son. "Let's tidy up a bit before he gets here." In the four days since Mara had left on her mission, their apartment had turned in to an absolute dump. Ben hurried to move the dirty dishes off the caf table, while Luke grabbed an armful of Ben's toys and put them on the floor of his son's room.

The doorbell rang. Ben opened the door and saw his cousin, who immediately held out his datapad. "Hey Jacen! Thanks!" Ben ran to the corner to work on his project.

"Hello, how are you Uncle Luke?" Jacen shook his uncle's hand.

"Tired. The broken datapad fiasco began at 0300 hours. It's been a long day already. Want some caf?" Luke knew he could use some after the last couple hours.

"Sure, that sounds good." Jacen followed his uncle to the kitchen and watched as Luke brewed some caf. They sat and talked as they enjoyed their drinks. Luke enjoyed this time with his nephew. This was the nicest conversation they'd had in years.

Just as they were both finishing their second cups, Ben came into the room. "I'm finished!" He held out the same piece of flimsy as before. Now it was covered in notes. "Thank you for bringing your datapad," he said to Jacen.

"You're very welcome. What's your project on?"

"It's about heroes of the Rebellion. I chose to do mine on Wedge Antilles." Jacen almost choked on his caf as he bit back a laugh.

Luke buried his head in his hands. "Why didn't you tell me that earlier?" he grumbled.

Ben chose not to answer his question. "Can you take me to school now? I want to practice in the classroom before I actually have to give my speech."

"Okay, go get ready." Luke waited until Ben was out of the room to tell Jacen, "Don't worry, you'll find yourself in these situations too when you're a parent." Something flashed across Jacen's face, but it was gone too fast for Luke to identify. Ben returned in his school clothes. Luke doubted that his son had brushed his teeth or combed his hair, but he wasn't too worried about that right now. "What do you need to say to Jacen?"

"Thank you so much for bringing over the datapad." Ben gave Jacen a hug.

"Yes, thank you. I really appreciate it," Luke thanked his nephew.

"You're welcome. It wasn't any problem." Jacen took the last sip of his caf and walked out with Luke and Ben to the landing pad. "See you guys later."

"Bye!" Ben tried to shrink as he and his dad got into the speeder.

Luke glanced over at him. "What are we going to talk about?"

"I already know what you're going to say. You're going to say that I need to be more responsible because Jedi need to be responsible, and then you're going to say that you're not mad, just disappointed. Last, you're going to tell me to not do it again."

Luke nodded. "I'd say that is pretty much spot on. Do we need to actually have this discussion?"

"No."

"Very good. Have a nice day at school." Luke watched as Ben went into the building.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! Loteva left the prompt for this chapter. She suggested that Ben procrastinate on his homework. Special thanks to SiouxFan, Fettkat, becgate, NoImagination, and Loteva for spoiling me with reviews. I really do appreciate it when you leave feedback for me, and of course chapter ideas are always wonderful. Thanks again for reading!

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	12. A Fly on the Wall

Age: 9 standard years

"Remember, let the Force _flow _through you." Jacen walked up and down the rows of students. "It will guide your motions if you allow it to." He stepped back as one particularly enthusiastic trainee, sensing his movement, tried to attack him rather than their remote. They had certainly improved in the week since their last lesson with him. He and Jaina were each mentoring one session of lightsaber training per week, and his sister must have worked them hard last time. Most of the students could now block at least eighty percent of the bolts that their remotes shot, and only a few still looked uncertain with their training sabers.

"Jedi Solo, how will we know that it is the Force guiding our actions?" asked one of the trainees, a male Anx named Milek.

That question made Jacen smile. It was exactly the type of thing that a younger version of himself might have asked. "I know this isn't a very satisfying answer, Milek, but you will feel less in control of your own motions, even though you are still aware of what is happening. It will take time and practice before you really understand the feeling."

"Am I letting the Force flow through me?" Jacen turned to see who had asked the question.

"I don't think so, as you are facing the exact opposite direction of your remote." The girl blushed a bright shade of pink and immediately turned so she was facing her remote. He heard a snort of laughter from across the room and turned to glare at his cousin. Ben was supposed to be meditating, an exercise in finding calm even in the most chaotic situations. Apparently, the lesson was not going very well.

He would talk to his cousin about the importance of focusing on his assignment later. Right now, the fourteen trainees required his attention. Jacen walked over to where one of them was struggling to even find the remote, much less deflect the bolts. "Are you doing all right?" he asked.

"No," the student complained. "I'm trying really hard, Jedi Solo, I really am, but I just can't do it."

"Don't worry, Tarvia, this doesn't come easily to everyone. You've made lots of progress since I last saw you. I think it would help, though, if you took a moment to calm down before you go again." Jacen didn't believe in his uncle's old-fashioned ideas of light and dark sides of the Force, but he had found it was better to fight with a cool detachment rather than anger.

Another student chimed in. "Master Skywalker says that fighting out of anger is the path of the dark side," said Nelani, one of the oldest students in the class.

Jacen suppressed an eye roll. As much as he disagreed with Luke, it wouldn't be right to start a debate in the middle of a lightsaber training lesson. "That is what he says," he agreed.

"What do you think, Jedi Solo?" asked Nelani.

"My views on the Force differ quite a bit from Master Skywalker's, but he is certainly right that you shouldn't fight when you are truly angry."

Nelani's eyes widened. She had probably never even considered the idea of a Jedi Knight actually disagreeing with the Grand Master. "What is your philosophy of the Force, then?"

The attention of almost all the students was now on their conversation. Jacen sighed. He wasn't going to escape this lesson without giving at least a simple explanation of Vergere's teachings. He thought for a moment on how to best phrase his response. "Well," he began, "I believe that there is no true light or dark side. The Force is one. It is the intentions of individuals who wield its power that determine whether an action falls under what most Jedi would consider the light or dark side.

"For example, if I killed an animal and ate it to stop myself from starving, that would fall under the light side, yes?" His students nodded, and a few voiced their agreement.

"Now, what if I do that same action under very different intentions? What if I kill the animal not because I need its meat to survive, but just because I enjoy the act of killing other creatures? Now, does my action fall under the light or dark side?"

The room was silent. Jacen glanced over to where Ben was sitting. Like the other students, Ben appeared to be lost in thought, thinking hard about Jacen's words. Nelani raised her hand hesitantly. "Yes, Apprentice Dinn?"

"What if you took this viewpoint to an extreme? What if, instead of hunting, you changed this to say, murdering another sentient? If you killed them because of good intentions, would you believe that act was justified?" she asked.

Jacen nodded. "Yes. Obviously, you would need a good reason, but part of a Jedi's duty is to do what they believe is right."

"I'm not sure I'm comfortable with taking that logic so far," said Nelani. A few of the other apprentices agreed with her.

"Naturally, as individual students of the Force, you must come to your own conclusions." Jacen hoped that was enough to sate the students' curiosity, at least for today. "All right, everybody, get back to work!"

The apprentices went back to their training stations silently, but the atmosphere in the room was less relaxed than it had been before. Jacen hoped that they would realize the logic behind his views, but for some, like Nelani, he had little hope. He headed towards the corner, where Ben was pretending to meditate. Time to chat with his informal apprentice about following instructions and focusing on one's assignments.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! The idea for this chapter came from SiouxFan, who suggested a chapter set while Jacen was teaching at the academy, possibly involving Nelani. Hope that this was what you were looking for! Extra thanks to Loteva for reviewing. I do hope you'll take a minute to leave a review – I love your feedback. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Until next time,

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	13. Cinematic Masterpiece

Age: 13 standard years

* * *

All they could do was wait. Jacen had contacted a few of Intelligence's spies in the underground criminal networks to keep a lookout for the supposedly-abducted senator and his mistress. Ben lounged back in the copilot's chair on the _Shadowmoth_.

"It's going to be a few hours. I know what we should do," said Jacen.

Ben barely stopped himself from groaning out loud. Whatever his cousin had planned, it wouldn't be any fun. Jacen probably wanted to meditate whie Ben worked on the pile of schoolwork Master Solusar had sent with him.

Jacen noticed Ben's expression, and decided to tease him a bit. "What does a Jedi do when they have a bit of free time on a mission, Ben?" His cousin scowled at him. Jacen smiled. "How does going to the holos sound?"

Ben opened his mouth to complain before he realized what Jacen had said. "Really?" he asked. Jacen nodded. "Yes! Which one are we gonna go see?"

"I thought you could pick."

Ben almost bounced out of his seat in a way that was entirely unbefitting for a young Jedi. "Come on, then, let's go!" He pulled on his boots and was out the ramp of the _Shadowmoth _before Jacen could respond.

Together, they walked through the crowded streets of Kuat. Neither had thought find the theater on a map before they left, and even though amusements of seemingly every type surrounded them, there were no cinemas in sight. "Any ideas?" asked Ben after twenty minutes of searching. Jacen shook his head. "Should we ask for directions? There's an information droid over there who might be able to help." He gestured to where a copper-colored droid was handing out brochures and talking to a group of Mon Calamari tourists.

"No. We can find it ourselves," Jacen replied. He turned to walk in the opposite direction of the information desk, but Ben stopped him.

"Come on, we won't find this any other way." Ben dragged him to the desk. "Hello, we're looking for a holovid theater. Do you know where we could find one?" he asked the droid.

Jacen glanced around, determined to not be seen asking for directions, even by a bunch of fellow tourists who wouldn't recognize him. He spotted a sign for an old Wynssa Starflare movie. "Come on, I've found it," he said, grabbing his cousin by the elbow and pulling him away from the information desk. "Thank you!" he told the service droid as they left.

"Oh, lubed, let's go see that one!" Ben pointed to the poster Jacen had seen before.

Jacen snorted. His cousin had no idea what this holofilm was about; he only knew that there was a beautiful blond girl that wore skimpy outfits in it. "Really? I was sure you'd go for _The Happy Ewoks and the Runaway Tauntaun_" he said.

"Please tell me you made up that title. That sounds beyond terrible." Jacen pointed up at the sign. Ben's nose wrinkled. "Really? Who thought that would be a good movie?"

"Parents of three year olds probably enjoy the two hours of sitting while their child is quiet. Otherwise, I'm not sure," Jacen replied. Ben shrugged, and the two of them walked into the lobby. Jacen bought their tickets from a pretty, young Kuati woman who kept trying to catch his eye, and they found their spots in the theater.

The holofilm was exactly what Jacen had expected. The script could have been written by a group of boys Ben's age; the plot was simplistic yet somehow filled with holes big enough to pilot the _Falcon _through, explosions took place instead of character development, and Wynnsa Starflare wore less clothes than any self-respecting spy would ever don.

"That was the greatest holo ever," said Ben as they left.

"Hmm … did you like the main woman?"

"Well, she wasn't the _only _part that was awesome," Ben tried to defend himself.

Jacen smiled evilly. "Did you know that she's actually older than your dad?"

"What!? No!" Ben looked absolutely crestfallen. "You're kidding, right?"

"Nope. That was an old movie. Her name is Wynssa Starflare, if you'd like to look her up."

"I hate you."

"Remember, my young padawan, hate is the path to the dark side."

Ben sombered. "I don't hate you, Jacen."

"Good to know."

"Yet."

"Little ingrate."

* * *

**A/N**: Thanks for reading! I hope you liked it. Thanks to NoImagination, Loteva, Me (no, I'm not reviewing my own fics, this was a guest's name), and Tricia1985 for reviewing! Special thanks to Loteva for supplying the prompt for this chapter. As always, reviews and feedback of any kind are much appreciated.

Housekeeping: I've had a request for Caedus-y chapters. I think these are a great idea, and I'm super interested in writing them, so I think the timeline of this fic might change a little bit to include some portions of LotF. I plan to write many more chapters, but I wanted to let you all know that the updates will probably be few and far between during the school year. Also, a few chapters ago, there was a request for dark-side Ben as Jacen's apprentice. That is in the works, so be on the lookout in the coming weeks for it.

Thanks again!

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	14. In The Akk Dog House

Age: 10 standard years

"Whoa, Jacen, you never told me you have a secret mistress! Is that kind of like a girlfriend?"

Jacen nearly choked on his pastry. "What?" he asked.

His cousin pointed to the corner of the tapcaf, where a gossip holo was showing an image of Jacen from a few nights prior sitting next to a pretty blond woman at a bar. Sure enough, underneath in bold white letters was written, "Solo's Secret Mistress?" The screen shifted back to three females of different species, who were trying to guess who the lucky girl could be.

"Kriff," he swore under his breath.

Ben's eyebrows shot up. "What's wrong, Jacen? Was I not supposed to know about this girl?"

Jacen ran his hand through his hair. "Don't worry about it, Ben. Just hurry up and finish your, well, whatever that is, all right?"

Ben nodded and quickly scarfed down the rest of the gooey, chocolaty monstrosity he'd ordered. Sensing that Jacen was upset by the report, he stopped watching the holo. "Do you really have a mistress?"

"No." He replied shortly. "Ready to head out?"

"Yep!" Ben followed him out to his speeder.

* * *

After he dropped off his cousin at the Skywalkers' apartment, Jacen hurried back to his flat. He checked that all the doors and windows were shut and locked, and he quickly scanned the apartment for any signs of surveillance devices. Finding nothing, he pried out the false bottom in his dresser drawer, retrieving a slim, silver comlink. He entered a code from memory, fidgeting as he waited for the other person to answer.

"Jacen, are you all right?" asked a worried Hapan voice.

Suddenly, he had no idea what to say. He searched for a way to bring up the subject of the woman on the television, but he could think of nothing.

"Jacen? Jacen, are you there?" Tenel Ka asked again.

He forced himself to say something. "Hi, Tenel Ka, how have you been?"

"I'm fine. What's wrong? You didn't risk this call just to catch up."

Jacen laughed nervously, "well, yeah, about that, umm … you don't happen to watch _Gigi's Gossip_, do you?"

"No, I don't have time for shows like that, or care about celebrities" Tenel Ka replied. "Do I even want to know?"

"Well, there was this thing about me in there today, and it's definitely not true, but I thought you should know…"

After a few seconds of silence, she asked for clarification.

"I don't actually have a girlfriend."

Tenel Ka actually laughed. "Not a fact. Yes, you do."

Jacen smiled. It had been far too long since he talked to Tenel Ka. "No, you're far more than my girlfriend. My lover, maybe? Or maybe, I'm just your boy toy. That seems like a better way of describing us."

"Fact."

His voice grew serious. "You do know that I love you and would never betray you like that, right?"

"Don't worry about it, Jacen. I would like to think I'm not a fool enough to believe the gossip holos."

He heard a noise in the background. "Tenel Ka?"

"I'm going to have to go now. Let's talk again soon." Jacen could hear her ordering a servant to wait for a moment. "No more girlfriends, yes?"

"I think your jokes are getting better. Give my love to Allana," he replied.

"Consider it done. Anyway, everybody here thinks my jokes are funny. Goodbye, Jacen." With that, Tenel Ka ended the call.

He smiled stupidly at the comlink for a moment before putting it back in its place. He didn't know how to describe the way he felt for Tenel Ka and Allana, but the warmth that came from even a short conversation with Tenel Ka was wonderful. The ringing of his other comlink brought him out from his thoughts.

"Jacen Solo speaking," he answered.

His mother's voice greeted him. "Jacen, tell me all about this girl. Are you really seeing her?"

He bit back a groan.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! SiouxFan suggested some Tenel Ka/ Jacen interaction. Thanks to SiouxFan, Loteva, NoImagination, Onimiman, and earinabox for reviewing! I really appreciate the feedback, and would love it if you would take a minute to leave a review. As always, chapter suggestions are welcome. Until next time,

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	15. Death's Newest Friend

Age: 14 standard years

Jacen stopped at the entrance to the tunnel to watch Ben without being observed. The boy sat against the wall, his knees pressed to his chest. Despite the pain he must be going through, Jacen could not hear any sobbing.

As far as he could tell, the scene remained undisturbed. He slipped back to a few hours before, watched the very end of his battle with Mara play out before him. Jacen could see that the rocks still lay in the same spots as before. _Interesting._

He looked back to Ben, this time appraisingly. The boy's behavior only reassured him that Ben would make an excellent apprentice. His cousin had preserved the scene of his mother's murder, probably in the hope that someone would be able to find forensic evidence that would lead to the killer. Shevu's lessons must have stuck with him. Those logical, investigative instincts would serve him well as a Sith Lord.

He stepped forwards into the tunnel, allowing his footsteps to echo in the open space.

"Hello, Jacen." His cousin's voice revealed the pure agony he had suffered in the last few hours. Ben turned to look at him, and Jacen could see that his eyes were dry.

As Jacen fully entered the chamber, he was confronted with the sight of his aunt's corpse. For Ben's benefit, he dropped his jaw as though in shock. The expression was not entirely false. Though he had, of course, known of Mara's death, he thought her body would have disappeared by now. Luke's stories had made it seem that a Jedi's body vanished at its time of death, but Jacen had assumed when Mara did not immediately disappear that there could be some delay. Apparently, he had been wrong. Mara Jade Skywalker must not have joined fully with the Force.

He tore his eyes away from Mara's body to look back at his cousin. "It's okay, Ben. It's okay. We'll get whoever did this. I swear we will." His voice shook as he spoke, a calculated display of false emotion.

Something changed in Ben's eyes as Jacen spoke. The boy seemed to mentally file something away before shaking his head slightly and looking into Jacen's eyes. "Jacen, I need to find my dad," he said.

Ben's demeanor bothered him, but his cousin had hidden his Force presence, so Jacen had no way of discovering what he was thinking. "Let's go to him, then," he responded with a nod.

Jacen gently lifted his aunt's body using the Force, letting it hover in front of them as he and Ben walked back to his shuttle. Ben shook slightly as he went through the pre-flight checklist while Jacen secured Mara's body in the cargo hold. It was not the most respectful way to transport a corpse, but there simply wasn't room in the cockpit for more than two passengers – dead or alive.

"Where are we going?" he asked as he settled himself into the pilot's seat.

Ben thought for a moment, perhaps reaching out to his father in the Force. "Hapes," he answered.

Jacen set the course into the navicomputer before speaking to his cousin. "Ben, I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but things will get better."

The boy turned away, avoiding eye contact, and said nothing.

He piloted their shuttle away from Kavan and towards Hapes in silence. Ben could not know the truth behind his words. Mara had been a useful ally and a formidable opponent, and when combined with Ben's love, those traits had made her the perfect sacrifice. Someday, when Ben was firmly ensconced as Jacen's apprentice, he would reveal how she had met her end, and though the boy would initially hate him for it, at some point he would realize the value of Jacen's sacrifice. Only then would Ben truly join him as a Sith.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! A guest (or multiple guests?) suggested that I work on some Ben/Caedus interaction (though I suppose he's not technically Caedus yet in this chapter). Even more than usual, I'd like to thank Karen Traviss, who wrote the scene this is based on for _Sacrifice_. I've borrowed quite a bit of the dialogue and action from that scene (pages 348-9 in my copy, if you're interested). I've been planning this chapter for quite a while, and originally intended for this to be the conclusion to _Following in his Footsteps_, but I decided to publish it early and keep the story going. Thanks to Loteva and Onimiman for reviewing! Thanks again for reading!

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	16. The Scenic Route

Age: 11 standard years

That bar had to be new; Ben definitely would have recognized the swirling yellow, pink, and green designs in its front window. But when he looked around, everything else seemed familiar. Perhaps he had just missed The Angry Nexu the first time he had passed by.

He continued down the busy road, worried for the first time that he would never find the restaurant he where he and Jacen had agreed to meet. The instructions should have been easy to follow. Jacen had told him to go to Level 1617 using the north turbolift in the Skywalkers' apartment building, which he had done. Then, he was to find the toy shop with stuffed Ewoks in the window displays and turn right. If he kept walking a quarter of a kilometer or so past that, he should find Cincetto's on his left.

Ben had listened carefully and tried to follow Jacen's directions, but he could not find the toy shop. He wondered how long it had been since his cousin last visited this restaurant. Was it possible that the shop had gone out of business? He'd searched everywhere for this store, but no matter which direction he walked or how many times he checked that he actually was on Level 1617, he couldn't find a shop that matched the description Jacen had provided.

Why did Jacen want to meet him down here anyway? This was several levels lower than Ben had ever visited by himself, and the sentients around him looked a bit dirtier, a bit tougher, and generally shadier than his neighbors in the upper levels. As a Jedi apprentice, Ben knew he could take care of himself, but as an eleven year old alone in an unfamiliar neighborhood, he still felt uncomfortable.

Finally, he gave up his last hope of ever finding the restaurant. He'd checked every storefront and side alley within a half-kilometer radius of the turbolift exit, but Cincetto's was nowhere to be found. He sat down on a fairly clean-looking bench to plan his next steps.

Comming Jacen would feel too much like defeat. His cousin and informal master had given him a very specific set of instructions, and Ben hadn't been able to follow them. He didn't want to show Jacen that he wasn't a responsible apprentice.

Going home was even less of an option. His parents had been super protective recently, and they probably wouldn't approve of Jacen asking him to go into the lower levels by himself. Mom especially would be angry, both at him and Jacen.

Best to just keep looking. He would have to find it eventually, right? Ben picked a direction to continue his search and started walking. Suddenly, strong hands gripped him from behind. Cold fear spread through his body, and Ben opened his mouth to scream.

"Ben, it's okay, it's just me." The sound of Jacen's voice immediately calmed Ben.

He shook off his cousin's hands and turned around. "Why'd you grab me like that? I thought you were trying to mug me!"

"I called for you a couple times, but I think you'd tuned out your surroundings because you didn't answer," Jacen said. "A Jedi must always be aware of his surroundings, Ben. Remember that."

"Yeah, I know." Ben followed Jacen back to the turbolift. "Wait, aren't we going to the restaurant?"

Jacen pressed the button for the lift. "Yes. Did you forget something down here?"

"No. Isn't Cincetto's somewhere around here?"

"Oh, I see our problem," said Jacen. "Ben, what level are we on?"

"Sixteen seventeen," he answered promptly.

Jacen smiled. "The restaurant's on Level 1716. I must have said it wrong. Sorry for giving you the wrong directions."

"It's fine." The fell into silence as they stepped onto the turbolift. A thought came to Ben. "Wait, how did you find me if I was on a completely different level?"

"You were…" Jacen quickly checked his chrono, "thirty minutes late, and you hadn't called. I figured you must be lost somewhere, so I went looking for you. The Force led me down here."

Ben was amazed. "Can you teach me how to do that?"

"Sure. We can work on it later." Ben's stomach growled loudly. "First, let's take care of that," Jacen laughed. The turbolift doors opened on Level 1716. "Shall we?"

His cousin stepped onto the pedwalk, and Ben followed. He'd forgotten his hunger while lost in the lower levels, but food did sound good now that he'd been found. "Thanks, Jacen."

"No problem." Ben could hear the laughter in Jacen's voice when he next spoke. "So, see any nice tattoos down there?"

Ben snorted, trying to mentally catalog all the interesting body art he'd seen. Really, that list should provide an entire meal's worth of conversation.

* * *

**A/N:** Loteva came up with the idea for this chapter – Ben getting lost, and Jacen finding him. Thanks, Loteva, for the lovely idea, and thanks to everybody else for reading. Extra thanks to Onimiman and NoImagination for reviewing.

Shameless self-promotion: Several chapters ago, I received a guest review that suggested I write a chapter with Ben as Caedus's Sith apprentice. I couldn't make that work with this fic, as I wanted everything here to be canon-compliant, but it was an awesome idea and eventually became a multi-chap fic. I've posted the first chapter under the title "Shadows of Light."

Thanks again for reading!

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	17. The Roseberry Jam Incident

Age: 8.5 standard years

Ben licked the spoon, trying to decide if the batter was sweet enough yet. His nose crinkled and his lips puckered at the taste. "Uggh, yuck! It's really sour. Needs more sugar, Dad," he said.

Luke Skywalker reached into the cupboard and pulled out the sugar jar. "How much do you think it'll need?"

"A lot. This stuff is disgusting." He offered the spoon out to his father.

"We followed all the instructions. It can't be _that _bad." Luke tried a mouthful. His eyes scrunched closed and he struggled to swallow. "Okay, you're right, that's terrible," he said. "Are you sure that your mother actually likes this?"

Ben shrugged. "You said she liked roseberry cake. Maybe we did something wrong?" He grabbed the recipe from the counter. "Okay, two eggs, check. Four hundred and fifty milliliters milk, check. One hundred twenty five grams sugar, also check. Two hundred grams roseberries, check. I think we have almost everything in here," he said, scanning the rest of the ingredients list. "According to this, all we should have to do is stick this in the oven and then frost it."

"And the filling."

Ben nodded. "Yeah, that too. I really think we should add more sugar to it, though. I know the recipe doesn't say to, but it's pretty vile without it."

Luke looked at the batter thoughtfully, then turned to look at the wall chrono. "Let's stick it in the oven," he suggested. "We've still got enough time to find something else if it's really terrible."

"How will we know? We shouldn't just take a chunk out of the cake."

"We'll just cut a little off the top. Don't worry, no one will ever notice." Luke poured the batter into the cake pan. "Okay, how long does this go in for?"

Ben read the directions carefully. "Forty-five minutes."

Luke programmed forty five minutes into the oven's timer. "Let's see how this works out."

* * *

Only nine minutes later, Luke's comlink buzzed. "Master Skywalker speaking," he answered. "Oh no. Yeah, I'll be right there. Contact the rest of the Council and tell them to meet in ten minutes." He hung up and turned to his son. "I'm really sorry, Ben, but I have to go. I'll turn on Nana, and you two can work on the cake together, all right?"

Ben wanted his father to stay and help, but he knew that anything that required an immediate meeting of the Jedi Council was far more important than his mother's birthday cake. "Bye, Dad."

"Go power on Nana, all right? Someone needs to keep an eye on you while I'm gone." Luke pulled his boots on. "Let Nana get the cake out of the oven. I don't think I'll be back before then." He kissed his son on the forehead and left.

Ben waved and went to turn on Nana, trying not to let his disappointment show as the droid whirred to life. He was eight and a half years old; he didn't need a babysitter to watch him.

"What's wrong, Ben?" asked Nana the instant she could speak.

Ben sighed. Why did Lando have to make his YVH nanny droids so _smart_? "Nothing, Nana, don't worry about it."

"Master Ben, I am programmed not to accept lies from children. Your facial expressions clearly indicate that there is something wrong. Please, tell me what it is," Nana said in the scolding tone Ben hated.

He _really _didn't want to talk about Dad leaving, so Ben told a half-truth instead. "I'm making a cake for Mom's birthday, but I don't know if it'll be any good. The batter tasted pretty terrible."

Nana made a sound that imitated a sigh of relief. "I am very glad to hear that you are not in any danger," she replied. "Perhaps we can finish this cake together?"

"Yeah, sure. It should probably come out of the oven soon. We can get started on the filling." Ben led Nana into the kitchen and tasked her with finding the ingredients for the frosting and filling while he reread the instructions.

Convinced that he understood the steps, Ben dumped the berries, sugar, and cream cheese into the mixer. "Ready, Nana?" he asked.

"Ben, should you really be using that by yourself?"

"It'll be fine." Before Nana could voice any more concerns, he turned the mixer on to high. Red roseberry pieces splattered all over the formerly pristine white surfaces of the kitchen. "Kriff," Ben swore.

Nana glared at him. "Ben Skywalker, you know better than to use that language."

"Sorry, Nana." Ben surveyed the damage. It looked as though a bomb filled with reddish-pink paint had been detonated inside their kitchen. Each and every one of the white cupboards had at least a few berry fragments on it, and juice was puddled on the floor. Looking up, Ben could see that the ceiling had not escaped the bombardment. Sticky red droplets fell onto his face. "I didn't even know that those berries had that much juice," he stated.

"I suggest that you start cleaning," Nana said, handing him a wet rag. Together, they cleaned up the messes they could reach. They decided to leave the ceiling for when Luke and Mara came back.

The buzzer went off. "I'll get it!" Ben hurried over to the oven.

"I can't let you do that, Ben. The oven could burn you." Instead, Nana pulled out the cake and set it out to cool.

Ben finished cleaning a particularly stubborn roseberry stain off of one of the leg of the table. "So, when do we get to try it?"

Nana barely glanced at him before replying, "When your parents come back. I am not authorized to allow you any more than your recommended daily allowance of sugar or fat, and I am sure a slice of cake contains more than that."

"But Dad said I could test it to make sure it was good!" he complained.

"When your father returns, he may serve you a slice. You can wait until then. Now, let's start on the filling."

Ben thought as he scooped four tablespoons of roseberry jam into the mixing bowl. It wasn't _fair _that Nana was so mean to him. He wasn't a little kid anymore. He could make some of his own decisions, but Nana still treated him like she had when he was four. Anger growing, he scooped a fifth tablespoon of jam and aimed towards Nana. He let go, and the jam hit between Nana's head and torso. The gooey red gel slid into her torso, and Nana went terribly still.

"Nana? Nana, are you all right? Nana, I'm really sorry! Please answer me!" Ben turned the droid around, but her photoreceptors were dimmed. He knew something was very wrong with Nana. "Please, Nana, you need to wake up. I wasn't trying to hurt you!"

Apparently, an angry eight year old had discovered on accident what the Yuuzhan Vong had struggled with for years: how to destroy a YVH droid. Roseberry jam, it seemed, was their one weakness. Despite Ben's pleading, Nana would not turn back on.

Ben backed away from Nana, horrified that he had hurt the droid that cared for him so much. He sat down across the room, trying to think of a solution. Nothing came to mind. There was no way that he could make everything better. He thought about calling his parents, but he knew they wouldn't come. Their meeting was too important to come home for a droid. Ben used the quiet of the Skywalker's apartment to mourn Nana in perfect silence. He hoped the repair shop would be able to fix her.

Right now, all Ben wanted was to have Nana back.

* * *

**A/N:** Thanks for reading! It's been a while since I published a new chapter of this – glad to be back. The prompt for this chapter came (a ridiculously long time ago) from Loteva, who wanted to see Ben and Jacen bake a cake. Well, I'm not going to swear to the edibility of the cake Ben and Luke made, but I hope it kind of fit what she was looking for. As always, I love prompts (and am actually out now), so if anyone has anything specific they'd like to see, don't hesitate to leave a suggestion. Thanks to NoImagination, Onimiman, and Loteva for reviewing! Until next time,

~finnicko-loves-anniec


	18. Of Queens and Princesses

_39 ABY_

"I love you. I can't begin to tell you how much." Jacen threaded his fingers through Tenel Ka's long, rusty-red hair, free for once from its customary braids. He kissed her forehead before leaning down to press another kiss to her lips. "I don't know how I live without you when we have to be apart, Tenel Ka. You're my life."

He heard her snort, knew that she thought everything he had just said was saccharine sweet, but he didn't try to take back his words. They were true, and though Tenel Ka would never admit it in those terms, she felt the same way.

Jacen broke the kiss to begin removing his shirt, but Tenel Ka dragged him down for another embrace before he could slip it off his shoulders. "Stay here, with me." Her words were soft, but Jacen could sense the power behind them.

"I can't. You know I can't." Though he longed to stay, to be here with Tenel Ka and their daughter, Jacen knew he couldn't. He'd never be happy as a courtier, always in Tenel Ka's shadow, treated as little more than her pet by the nobility. He was accustomed to having his independence, to being his own man, and he didn't think that part of him could survive life in Tenel Ka's court. Even if he ignored his own needs and thought only of his daughter, staying on Hapes was not an option. The Hapans, especially the nobility, were still very suspicious of the Jedi. If they learned that the queen's consort and Chume'da's father was an important member of the Jedi Order, there could be a tremendous public backlash against Tenel Ka that would put their entire family in danger. No, Jacen decided, it wasn't worth it, not even to be near Tenel Ka and Allana.

Tenel Ka smiled, but Jacen could see the tears in her eyes. One ran down her face, and he brushed it away with his thumb. "I know. It can't happen; it never will." She rested her head against his chest. "That doesn't stop me from hoping."

"Me either." He wanted to stay here, with her wrapped in his arms, forever.

"You're leaving tomorrow." Tenel Ka's voice was accepting.

He couldn't bring himself to speak the words, so he just nodded. "I have a present for Allana before I go. Remind me to give it to her in the morning."

"Another present? Jacen, you're going to spoil her." Tenel Ka pushed him away with more force than she'd probably intended.

He stumbled back a few steps before regaining his balance. "She'll be fine. I'm not here that often to spoil her, so it should be a special treat. Anyway, she's the princess and heir to sixty-two –" "Sixty-three" Tenel Ka corrected.

"All right, sixty-three inhabited worlds. I think you just made my point for me. She's probably going to be a bit spoiled anyway, and it's better me doing it than anyone else." Yes, Tenel Ka, as usual, was right, but he didn't get many chances to see his daughter. Tenel Ka couldn't blame him for going a little overboard with the gifts on the rare occasions when they were together, could she?

Apparently, she could. She rolled her eyes at him. "You're terrible," she said.

"But you like me." He winked and pulled her flush against him.

"Yes, and I'm doubting the reasoning behind it more and more every day." She removed any sting from her words with another kiss.

That was an underhanded tactic to get the last word in if he'd ever seen one. "You love me too," he said once they finally separated.

"Fact. Now, I believe we were in the middle of something?" She gestured to his half-undone shirt.

He looked down in confusion, but understanding quickly spread across his face. Jacen finished removing the garment and lifted Tenel Ka into his arms. "Yes, I believe we were."

.

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**A/N:** Hello again! I figured that since Ben got a solo (pun only somewhat intended) chapter, Jacen was due for one as well, and a bit of Tenel Ka is always nice. Thank you so much to everyone for reading, and to Tavae Themisal, NoImagination, Loteva, and the anonymous reviewers for reviewing! The next chapter will probably be a little while, but I still love chapter ideas. Thanks again!

~finnicko-loves-anniec


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